Grease
The film is so well known, and for me and many like me, is an iconic part of my youth. I’ve seen the stage musical a few times before, and it’s never quite lived up to the movie. However, this version is refreshingly different from previous versions.
Many people don’t realise that the stage musical came before the movie, by some years, as it was first performed in the early 1970’s, whereas the movie came out in 1978. The soundtrack to the movie is just such a part of our culture, what with the Grease mega mixes played at many a wedding and school discos. So much so, that the songs that were cut from the movie, that feature in the musical, feel notably new, and even the slight changes in the order of songs from the movie is really noticeable. But when seeing a musical that is also such a massive movie, you need to approach it afresh, and the production team here have helped the audience do that by injecting such energy and warmth into this production.
They are helped by their very talented cast, many of whom are recent theatre school graduates. It’s refreshing not to have stunt star casting in a show like Grease, and it just goes to show that it’s so often not needed. What is needed, is what you have here; a talented enthusiastic cast, who can sing, dance, and make you laugh.
As almost everyone knows, Grease follows the story of summer lovers Danny and Sandy meeting again in high school after the summer holidays. But instead of continuing the romance, Danny finds himself conflicted, wanting to impress his ‘cool’ friends. Sandy is also caught up in a new world with her new friends the Pink Ladies. Danny attempts to change, and everyone struggles to admit their feelings for each other.
The musical, includes some of the most iconic songs from the film, timeless classics including Summer Nights, You’re the One That I Want, and We Go Together. The performances of these numbers are stunning. In particular Greased Lightning shows off Kenickie (George Michaelides) and the Burger Palace Boys (not T-Birds…that was invented by the movie!) jumping on top of a moving car and dancing a full routine on the bonnet, with some nifty percussion use of the garage oil drums.
There is also a lovely rendition of Hopelessly Devoted to You, by Hope Dawe’s Sandy. She perfectly hits every note, and gives a very sweet performance throughout.
It’s true to say that some of the plots and themes have dated. It certainly made for an interesting discussion with my daughter on the way home, about the way that both Sandy and Danny feel the need to change themselves to attract or keep the other!
Most of the cast were great. I’ve already mentioned the lovely performances from George Michaelides and Hope Dawe, but there are also great performances by Rebecca Stenhouse as sassy Rizzo, and Alicia Belgarde as Frenchy. In fact the Pink Ladies, and also Phoebe Roberts as Patty Symcox, are all very well drawn, well acted characters, and work well together, with Rizzo stealing the show with There are Worst Things I Could Do, showing her fragility as well as feistiness.
The boys are more caricatured. Danny played by Marley Fenton though is a great match for Sandy.
The choreography by the wonderful Arlene Phillips is also absolutely brilliant. The stage at the New Theatre is a decent size, but the scenery and settings for this are actually quite complex, so there is not a lot of dance space, and yet, Arlene has got her cast moving in beautiful unison at times, and maximising every inch of the space they have. The prom scene, complete with the Hand Jive number is just brilliant. It’s a really enjoyable scene. I also loved the scarf-ography in the finale, and of course the mega mix at the end!
Overall, this show directed by Nikolai Foster (originally for the Leicester Curve) is a joyous trip down memory lane!
This show was reviewed on the 24th September 2024 at the New Theatre Oxford where the show runs until the 28th September 2024. Tickets available here: Grease Tickets | New Theatre Oxford in Oxford | ATG Tickets
Review written by Ruth Hawkins
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Photo credit: Marc Brenner
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